Srinagar /sriˈnɑːɡər/ ( Hindi pronunciation (help·info)) is the summer capital of the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. It is situated in the Kashmir Valley and lies on the banks of the Jhelum River, a tributary of the Indus. The city is famous for its gardens, lakes and houseboats. It is also known for traditional Kashmiri handicrafts and dry fruits.
Etymologically Srinagar is composed of two Sanskrit words, śrī (venerable) and nagar, which means "city". One theory of the origin of the name is that a Pandava King Ashoka (not to be confused with the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka) built the city of Srinagari (Srinagar). Another theory is that Mauryan Emperor Ashoka founded the original city of Srinagar, then situated on the site of the present village of Pandrathan, 5 km to the north of the existing capital.
Srinagar has a long history, dating back at least to the 3rd century BC, and has been known by different names. The city was founded by the King Pravarasena II over 2,000 years ago, named it Parvasenpur. The city was then a part of the Maurya Empire, one of the largest empires of the Indian subcontinent. Ashoka introduced Buddhism to the Kashmir valley, and the adjoining regions around the city became a centre of Buddhism. In the 1st century, the region was under the control of Kushans and several rulers of this dynasty strengthened the Buddhist tradition. Vikramaditya (of Ujjain) and his successors probably ruled the regions just before the city fell to the control of the Huns in the 6th century, and Mihirkula was the most dreaded ruler of the city and the valley.
Narendra Damodardas Modi (Gujarati: નરેન્દ્ર મોદી; born 17 September 1950) is the current Chief Minister of the Indian state of Gujarat. Born in a middle class family in Vadnagar, he was the third of six children born to Damodardas Mulchand Modi and his wife Heeraben. He has been a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) since childhood also having interest in politics since adolescence. He holds a master's degree in political science. In 1998, he was chosen by L. K. Advani, the leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), to direct the election campaign in Gujarat as well as Himachal Pradesh.
He became Chief Minister of Gujarat in October 2001, promoted to the office at a time when his predecessor Keshubhai Patel had resigned, following the defeat of BJP in the by-elections. His tenure as chief minister of Gujarat began on 7 October 2001, and he is the longest serving Chief Minister of the state of Gujarat. In July 2007 he became the longest serving Chief Minister in Gujarat's history when he had been in power for 2063 days continuously. He was elected again for a third term on 23 December 2007 in the state elections, which he had cast as a "referendum on his rule".
Harjinder Singh Jinda was a member of a Sikh organization Khalistan Commando Force and one of the two assassins of Arun Vaidya (the Chief of Indian army at the time of Operation Bluestar and architect of Operation Bluestar). He was responsible for three high-profile killings; Arjan Dass, Lalit Maken and Gen. Vaidya. He along with other members of Khalistan Commando Force participated in Indian history's biggest bank robbery of Rs. 5.70 crore ($4.5 million) from Punjab National Bank, Miller Gunj branch, Ludhiana to finance the campaign for a separate Sikh state of Khalistan.
Harjinder Singh's mother's and father's names are Gurnam Kaur and Gulzar Singh. Jinda had two older brothers, Nirbhail Singh and Bhupinder Singh and one sister, Balvinder Kaur. Harinder Singh alias Mathra Singh and Jagjit Singh were nephews of Harjinder Singh Jinda. Sikh militant Surjit Singh Penta (who committed suicide by consuming cyanide during Operation Black Thunder in the year of 1998) was a cousin of Harjinder Singh Jinda. He belonged to a farmer family.
Maninder Singh pronunciation (help·info) (born 13 June 1965, in Pune, India) is a former international cricket player who represented India in 35 Test matches and 59 One Day Internationals. With his slow left-arm orthodox spin, Maninder was considered as an heir to Bishan Singh Bedi, who then held the record as India's leading spinner in terms of wickets. However, he failed to live up to the promise he held. He is now mostly remembered for his dismissal in the Madras test resulting in a tie against Australia in 1986-87 series. Though now retired from active cricket, Maninder is still in the scene as a cricket commentator. Maninder is one of the best spinners ever produced by India. The ball he clean bowled Javed Miandad is still considered one of the greatest balls bowled in international cricket.
On 22 May 2007, Maninder was questioned by police for possession of cocaine and he confessed to using cocaine for himself. It is alleged that they found 1.5 grams of cocaine in his residence in East Delhi, sold to him by a Nigerian national the police had been following.